In the fall semester of 2015, I became a part of the founding executive team of the University Chapter of PD. PD is a not-for-profit organization that sends university mentors into high schools across Montreal with the purpose of combatting the lack of financial literacy in youth. Bringing this project to life required substantial interdependence between the executive team members, consisting of myself, my co-president, our 4 vice presidents as well as the approved mentors. Between acquiring sponsorship, on boarding schools across the city, recruiting dedicated mentors and finding a schedule that works for upwards of 200 individuals, the team operates in constant contact and prides itself on responsiveness and flexibility. The team is structured in such a way that the two Chapter presidents report to the presidents of PennyDrops National, as well as each being responsible for two vice presidents (See Appendix A for detailed organizational chart). When the project began, the Chapter was operating independent of the National Organization and communicating quite effectively. However, as we approached the later and more complex stages of scheduling mentors, printing curriculums and travelling to high schools, the team experienced major lapses in communication. For example, mentors were alerting the National presidents when they decided to no longer take part in the program. This information was not passed down to the appropriate Chapter vice president, making him unable to properly schedule enough mentors for the weekly sessions. Additionally, there were several unedited versions of the curriculum in circulation, as several team members were sending out early drafts to mentors without approval. Information was being omitted and misconstrued, causing confusion, panic and unprofessionalism among a formerly cohesive team of capable individuals.
Evaluation
Our lack of